How Decluttering Your Home Can Declutter Your Mind

This clutter and mess thing is like the chicken and the egg. The external - our environment, is affected by what is going on internally - how we feel about ourselves, and is a reflection of it. At the same time, our external environment influences how we are feeling on the inside.When we feel lost, unmotivated, indecisive, down on ourselves and so on, this is often reflected in our environment, with things getting dirty, messy, disorganized and yuck. It might start with a bit of rubbish in the car and a few papers laying around, laundry piling up, skipping exercise, and before you know it you’re being nominated for Hoarders and you have TV cameras documenting the state you’ve gotten into, (Ok, hopefully not that bad, if you do something about it now). On the inside it starts with a decision. The decision to put off some task like the dishes, putting something away or attending to some paperwork will have been preceded by a feeling. So where did the feeling come from?

Negative feelings have many sources (that we can change), and one of them is our environment. If we see disorder around us, it can trigger an emotional response.So was it how you felt that caused things to start sliding or was it the mess and clutter that fed your bad feelings? Of course it goes both ways. So we can make this mean that the problem is unsolvable and will continue to escalate and feed itself, or we can make it mean that tackling the issue from either side (or preferably both) will turn things around.In order to make a difference we need to let go of reasons (excuses). Having plenty of valid, significant important reasons why we felt bad and let things slide is of no use to us other than to forgive ourselves our imperfections and let go of guilt so we can move on.Your environment - how you keep your belongings, your home, your car, your office, even your appearance, is a reflection of what is going on inside, - however, you can also influence what is going on inside by taking control of, and of course responsibility for, your environment.Think about what your environment, as it is now, says and shows and demonstrates about how you see yourself, what your values are, your behaviour and what you believe? When we have clear conflicts going on like this, between what we think is best and how things really are, it eats at us, sometimes to the point of being in denial and emotionally shutting down.So what I’m arguing here is that it really does matter to your mental well being that you make the effort to keep your environment free from clutter, orderly and clean. By fostering orderliness and cleanliness in your environment, you will be supporting positive feelings within yourself, for example:- that you are deserving of existing in a clean, orderly, aesthetically pleasing environment- that you are capable of creating such an environment- that you are operating at a level where these basic things are taken care of so that you can get on with more important things, because you have something valuable to contribute to the worldThese beliefs listed above are identity beliefs - what you believe about who you are. If these basic elements of your identity beliefs are shaky at times, you can strengthen them and build them up again by the decisions you make and the actions you take. These actions can be as simple as choosing to dress better, doing your dishes, your washing (laundry), your paperwork, cleaning out your car, cleaning out your handbag (purse),attending to some paperwork or errands. Or they can be bigger decisions, like embarking on an all out clearout involving a big rubbish collection and a charity pick up, or choosing to change your environment in different ways such as finding a new home, new friends, new interests, new places to hang out or a new career.It’s important to keep in mind what our desired outcome is - how we want things to be. This makes decision making clear. Thinking about keeping the clutter down for me, means seeking a feeling of calmness and well being. And of course, from this place of calmness and well being, I can get so much more done, including keeping clutter under control.What’s important to you in your life that you want your environment to reflect? What values do you want it to reflect? What do you want it to say about you?Perhaps like me, you want your home to be warm and friendly, welcoming, comfortable, beautiful, clean, orderly, a place where your family and friends feel welcome and cared for, a place where you feel calm and relaxed, a place that shows you that you are worthy, deserving, capable and loving.So join me in taking action today towards creating and supporting the environment you want. I’ve tidied up my desk and cleaned out my handbag, and I feel invigorated and inspired, as well as having found some misplaced items. I invite you to share in the comments what you’ve done for yourself today to un-clutter your environment and the positive feelings which resulted.

Comments

Everything you have said is right on.....or what they say now, spot on. I am frozen and can't take the first action to start whatever. I have been removed from my home because they are re mediating for mold. Everything is mixed up, in boxes, stacked in wrong places, on top of each other. Walls have been cut out and wood sub floors have been removed. It was supposed to take a week but it is now more than two months because as they cut, they find more. Now it's time to fix and rebuild. Porous items have to be thrown out. De cluttering is required! I can't start. I can't do it. Totally overwhelming! I know the concept-start little by little, but I can't start. I guess I don't need anything because I've been gone over two months and have my vitals with me (hair blower etc). I feel like putting a match down and set it all on fire hahaha. It's impossible. There are drawers and shelves of pictures from all generations. Bar mitzvah pictures that never went in the scrapbook (boys are 28 and 30). I run a successful business so I worry about other people, never about myself. I am totally frozen. How do you not hoard sentimental stuff? To make things worse, my husband is a techy. There are wires, TV cables and computer parts all over the place. I am bad but he is 10 times worse. Nothing gets thrown out. I have fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue (which is why we went on the search for mold). It's hard to move but I know I must or I will atrophy. How do you get the motivation. How do you take the first step. It's like being an addict, you know what you should do to be healthy, you just can't. two parts of the brain are in opposition. Help!

A factor in using our precious time well is to avoid clutter. We are aware that it takes time to handle things, to arrange them, to use them, to clean them, to store them, to look for them. More things require more time. Working in a room or a house that is crowded with items is more time-consuming and frustrating than it is to work in quarters with open spaces and uncluttered surfaces. Additionally, as more and more things accumulate, the time required to find a needed item increases.Housekeeping experts say that almost half the time people spend cleaning is wasted in “handling, getting around, and moving clutter and litter out of the way.” The situation is likely the same in other areas of life. So if you wish to make better use of your time, take a close look at your surroundings. Is clutter taking up your space, limiting your movement and, worst of all, wasting your time? If so, cut down on the clutter.Getting rid of clutter may not be easy. Throwing out cherished but unneeded items can be painful—almost like losing a good friend. So how can you decide whether to keep an item or to get rid of it? Some use the one-year rule. If you have not used something for a year, discard it. What if you are still reluctant to throw it out after a year? Put it in a holding area for six more months. When you look at it again and realize that a year and a half has passed by and you have not used it, parting with that item may be easier. In any case, the objective is to reduce clutter—to make better use of your time.

You are so right about this and I feel my life is full of chaos right now and as I am looking around my home and car are both full of crap. Papers, books,iformatiom from my other classes I never put away.... I do not want to be like this and I dont want my life to be chaotic.

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